Department of Mathematics and Statistics Newsletter 2015 Newsletter | Page 12

Team Alpha creates app for
monitoring Auburn oaks
at Toomer’s Corner

A group of students in the Department of
Mathematics and Statistics competed as “Team
Alpha” (pictured) in the Smart Cities Hackathon
competition in Auburn in February 2015 and took
home first place. The contest challenged teams
of students, researchers, data analysts, social
scientists, engineers, mathematicians, or anyone
who wanted to participate, to spend 48 hours
“hacking” on software and/or hardware to build
a smart tool for improving life in cities. During the
competition, eight teams of programmers faced
off, and Team Alpha created a tool that uses linear
algebra to analyze edge-detected screenshots of
the City of Auburn’s live feed of Toomer’s Corner
in order to determine if it is being rolled. If the
Auburn oak trees at Toomer’s corner are being
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rolled, their program posts to a Twitter account,
@IsToomersRolled, and updates the website at this
link: http://istoomerscornerbeingrolledrightnow.
github.io/.
Team Alpha members were Daniel Brice
(’14), Alex Byaly, Steven Clontz, and Zachary
Sarver, and they were one of two winners of
the local competition. The team received a $750
prize as well as the right to move on to a global
competition for larger prizes. Their project was
cited by the judges as a clever use of mathematics
that showcases a unique Auburn tradition. For
more information on the Smart Cities Hackathon
in Auburn, visit this website: http://www.global.
datafest.net/cities/auburn-us.